Hydraulic dredge.



W. F. HUNTER.

HYDRAULIG DRBDGE.

uruouxon FILED 3.12, 1910.

Patented Nov. 1, 1910.

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HYDRAULIC DREDGB.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 12, 1910.

Patented Nov. 1, 1910.

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THE NORRIS PET:

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM F. HUNTER, 0F ARCATA, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO THOMAS BAIR, OF ARCATA, CALIFORNIA.

HYDRAULIC DREDGE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM F. HUNTER, i a citizen of the United States, residing at i Arcata, in the county of Humboldt and State I of California, have invented a new and useful Hydraulic Dredge, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to hydraulic dredges designed for removing gold bearing gravel deposits from river beds by suction, and more particularly a dredge of this kind which, when in operation, has the mouth piece of its suction pipe guided by a diver.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a novel arrangement of parts whereby the mouth piece of the suction pipe can be readily controlled by the diver, and also to provide a mouth piece which will suck gravel from the sidesin any direction, and which may also be adjusted so as to suck from the bottom, the area of the side intake, as well as the bottom intake, being adjustable.

With these and other objects in view, as will appear more fully hereinafter, the invention consists in a combination and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which drawmgs,

Figure 1 is an elevation of the dredge. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the inlet end of the suction pipe showing the mouth piece. Fig. 3 is an enlarged elevation of the inlet end of the suction pipe. Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the parts in another position. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3. Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 6-6 of Fig 3. Fig. 7 is a horizontal section on the line 77 of Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, 1 denotes the hull of the dredge, on the deck of which is mounted a centrifugal pump 2, to the eye of which is connected, by means of a balland-socket joint 3, the suction pipe 4. The pump discharge is indicated at 5. In the suction pipe is a ball-and-socket joint 6 from whlch said pipe extends downwardly, through an opening in the hull, to the river bed. The suction pipe is raised and lowered by means of a hydraulic ram 7 having its plunger stem 8 connected to a cable 9 pass- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 12,

ing over a pulley 10 mounted in a suitable Patented Nov. '1, 1910. 1910. Serial No. 548,834.

frame work rising from the deck of the dredge, said cable extending down to, and being fastened to the suction pipe near the oint 6. Near this point, the suction pipe carries pulleys 11, over which pass cables 12, one end of said cables passing over a second set of pulleys carried by the joint 3, and extending from the last mentioned pulleys to the handles 13 of valves 14 controlling the operation of the ram 7. The other ends of the cables extend downwardly to the mouth piece of the suction pipe, and pass, adjacent to said mouth piece, through eyes 15, and have their ends fitted with handles 16. The handles are within easy reach of the diver, and the raising and lowering of the suction pipe can therefore be readily controlled by him, and they are also shaped differently, so that the diver can readily tell by the sense of touch which one to pull. A pull on one of the handles operates the valve which controls the lowering of the suction pipe, and a pull on the trols the raising of the suction pipe.

To the mouth or inlet end of the suction pipe is attached a cage 17 which prevents the said end from coming directly in contact with the river bed or thegravel bank. The mouth piece of the suction pipe is a tube 18 which is slidably mounted on the inlet end of the suction pipe, and carries at its lower end a shield 19 partly encircling the cage when the tube 18 is in its lowermost position. As the shield extends only partly around the cage, the latter is given a side intake opening, which is adjustable to extend in any direction by rotating the tube 18 on the suction pipe. The shield does not extend around the bottom of the cage, and the latter is therefore left open. The sleeve 18 is also slidable up and down on the suction pipe, so that the shield may be removed partly, or entirely from the cage. The tube 18 is held in adjusted position by means of a cam clamp 20 carried by said tube, and engageable with the suction pipe, a slot being made in the tube through which the cam clamp extends. To the lower end of the tune is riveted or otherwise secured a ring 21, to which ring the shield 19 is fastened by rivets or in any other suitable manner. The upper edge of the shield extends flush with the upper edge of thering 21, these two edges forming a ledge or shoulder, which is for a purpose to be presently described.

In order to vary the area of the opening formed by the shield 19, there is provided a gate 22 comprising a curved plate which is slidably mounted on the outside of the shield 19 so that it may be extended across said opening more or less, the gate being so dimensioned that it may also entirely cover said opening. The gate is carried by a ring 23 encircling the tube 18 above the shoulder formed by the upper edges of the ring 21 and the shield 19. The ring 23 loosely encircles the tube 18, so that the gate may be rotated to control the intake opening of the cage. The ring 23 is also slidable upwardly on the tube 18, to elevate the gate. The downward movement of the gate is limited by the shoulder formed by the ring 21 and the shield 19, and in this position, the lower edge of the gate is substantially flush with the lower edge of the shield.

To the ring 23 is fastened an upstanding stem 24 terminating at its upper end in a laterally extending grip or handle 25. To the tube 18 is attached a handle 26. These two handles are so located with respect to each other, that their rear ends come together when the gate is swung entirely open. On the tube 18 is a lug 27 which is engaged by the stem 24. when the gate is in closed position. The positions of the handles therefore determine the position of the gate. On the stem 24; is a lug 28, which, when placed above the lug 27, holds the gate in elevated position.

The advantages of the mouth piece herein described are that the diver can shift the same, and direct the inflow of water and gravel from any point on the side and bottom, thus allowing him to use his hands in removing rocks, without danger of having his hands, arms or legs drawn into the suction pipe, and the divers suit is also not liable to injury, as no water or rocks pass into the suction pipe from the divers side. The water is forced to enter on the side in which the opening is, thus washing the gravel loose from the bank, and which is then sucked into the pipe. In the old form of suction pipe, when the mouth piece is pushed against the gravel bank, the water stops coming in on that side, and enters on the side of the diver where there is no gravel. This defect is entirely overcome by the mouth piece herein described, and a much greater amount of gravel can be moved with the same expense, and in the same time. The front intake can be regulated by the diver to any desired area. If the gravel is compact and hard to loosen up, it can be readily loosened up by reducing the opening, Whereupon the water will rush in at a greater speed, thus running up the vacuum, and as the vacuum is on the side opposite from the diver, he is in no danger from the same. If a rock sucks against the cage, the diver can move the gate between the rock and the cage, thus cutting off the suction, after which he can remove the rock with perfect safety to himself, and without stopping the pump. hen the diver wishes the suction end to deflect in a certain direction through the water to a bank of gravel, he turns the shield 19 around on the suction pipe until the side intake opening points in the desired direction. Then as soon as the pump starts, the suction end will travel in that direction until it reaches the gravel bank, and it will stay thereagainst until the pump stops, or the shield is turned around to go in another direction. Heretofore, the diver held the suction pipe against the gravel with his shoulder, which was very hard, especially, when the suction pipe was other than vertical, and at such times he could do no other work, but with the herein described mouth piece, the diver can leave it at work against the gravel bank when it is necssary for him to do something else, and he also has the free use of his hands and body. Vith the old form of mouth piece, when it is necessary to clean the bed rock, the pump has to be stopped, and the cage moved up on the suction pipe so that the bottom of said pipe may come close to the bed rock, and then as soon as the bed rock was cleaned, the cage would be placed to its former position, this operation consuming considerable time. lVith my improved mouth piece, the diver can instantly shift the gate 22 over the intake opening, and force the water and gravel to be taken up from the bottom. Fig. 4 shows the parts in this position. Should the diver wish a larger volume of water to be taken in at the bottom, he slips the tube 18 upwardly on the suction pipe to the desired height, and then fastens it by means of the clamp 20. Fig. 4t also shows the position of the mouth piece when sinking down through the gravel to the bed rock. \Vhen the bed rock is reached, the diver stays there and works the bank of gravel in front, cleaning the bed rock before each movement of the dredge. The diver throws back on the cleaned bed rock such rocks as will not go through the suction pipe. Thus, he works on the bed rock in any direction according to the pay gravel. The area of bed rock that can be cleaned up without moving the dredge de pends on the depth of the bed rock from the bottom of the dredge. The deeper the bed rock, the more can be cleaned without moving the dredge. Any size suction pipe, with any amount of vacuum can be handled by one diver with ease and perfect safety to himself.

that is claimed is:

1. The combination with a suction pipe having a cage on its inlet end, of a mouth piece for said pipe having a portion partly covering the side of the cage to provide a side intake opening, said mouth piece being rotatably mounted on a suction ipe, and a gate carried by the mouth piece -tor controlling the aforesaid intake opening.

2. The combination With a suction pipe having a cage on its inlet end, of a mouth piece for said pipe having a portion partly covering the side of the cage to provide a side intake opening, and a gate carried by the mouth piece for controlling said intake opening, the mouth piece being rotatable and slidably mounted on the suction pipe.

3. The combination with a suction pipe, of a mouth piece rotatably mounted thereon, said mouth piece having a side intake opening, and a gate carried by the mouth piece and adjustable over said intake opening.

4. The combination With a suction pipe, of a mouth piece slidably mounted thereon, and having a side intake opening, and a gate carried by said mouth piece for controlling said opening.

5. The combination With a suction pipe, of a mouth piece mounted thereon, and having a side intake opening, a gate carried by the mouth piece, and adjustable over said opening, handles on the mouth piece and on the gate, said handles coming together and serving as stops for one posit-ion of the gate, and a lug on the mouth piece engageable by one of the handles to determine the other position of the gate.

6. The combination With a suction pipe having a cage on its inlet end, of a shield partly covering the side of the'cage to provide a side intake opening, said shield being rotatable to vary the angular position of the intake opening.

7. The combination with a suction pipe, of a shield slidably mounted on the inlet end thereof in the direction of its length, and having a side intake opening.

8. The combination With a suction pipe having a cage on its inlet end, of a shield partly covering the side of the cage to provide a side intake opening, said shield being slidable on the cage in the direction of its length.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WVILLIAM F. HUNTER.

W itnesses WVnsLnY WV. STONE, CHARLES E. STONE. 

